‘Tourists’ Flock to Electronic Black Markets in Asia : Are Soviets Buying Stolen Chips?
Large quantities of stolen computer microchips are being purchased on the black markets of Southeast Asia, apparently for resale to the Soviet Union and East Bloc countries eager to obtain British and American technology, industry officials say.
Officials said tourists of various nationalities have been seen buying microchips reported stolen in the six countries of the Assn. of Southeast Asian Nations, which groups Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and Brunei.
“These microchips are in great demand on the black market,” said an industry official who declined to be identified.
Official government comment was not available, but industry investigators said the chips “are being bought by strange tourists in Malaysia and Singapore and sold to the Russians at the India-Soviet border.”
“The Soviets and East Bloc countries are buying them in large quantities in order to obtain Western technology for research purposes,” said one investigator.
World’s Leading Exporter
Malaysia is the world’s leading exporter of integrated circuits used in computers and other electronic equipment.
Last year, it produced an estimated $2.4 billion worth of semiconductors, integrated circuits and electrical equipment for export.
American companies account for the bulk of foreign investment in the local electronics industry with combined investments of more than $800 million.
Singapore’s National Computer Board said microcomputers dominate the market with an 88% increase in unit sales, from 7,030 in 1982 to 13,200 in 1983.
“Microcomputers are expected to play a leading role in computer use both in the business sector and in homes,” the board said. “The growth of microcomputer use in Singapore is consistent with that of developed countries.”
Board officials declined, however, to comment on the theft and resale of microchips in Southeast Asia.
In 1983, police arrested three Singaporeans in their investigations into a series of multimillion-dollar thefts of computer chips.
Semiconductor plants in the Malaysian state of Penang reported a spate of thefts including organized truck hijackings and daylight robberies of computer chips.
Three men were alleged to have faked a traffic accident on the Malaysian island of Penang and hijacked a truck carrying $500,000 worth of microchips, police said.
The stolen goods were later found in Singapore, being sold openly in Chinatown and in the “thieves’ market” bazaar.
“The Soviets have for a long time been eyeing Western computer technology produced in this region, and that’s why they send out tourists to this part of the world to buy the stuff they need,” an industry official said.
He said U.S. companies operating here are closely monitoring the industrial scene “to ensure maximum security at their manufacturing plants.”
Britain recently said it was also keeping “a close watch” over the theft and resale of computer microchips in this part of the world.
Stealing Technology
“All sorts of devious ways are being carried out to steal such British computer technology,” said Kenneth Baker, British minister of state for industry and information technology, during a recent visit to Singapore.
A computer expert said the fact that most of the people who purchase the chips on the black market are tourists is hampering international and regional efforts to track down the thieves.
“Perhaps only some form of legislation preventing tourists from taking out of Southeast Asia a specific number or quota of computerized equipment could help prevent the Soviets from laying hold on Western computer technology,” the expert said.
